Department of Molecular Biology Faculty of Biology, Geography and Oceanology University of Gdansk Prof. Grzegorz Wegrzyn (Head of Department) Prof. Alina Taylor Dr Sylwia Baranska Dr Agata Czyz (hab. submitted) Dr Grazyna Konopa Dr Magdalena Gabig-Ciminska Dr Beata Guzow-Krzeminska Dr Anna Herman-Antosiewicz Dr Joanna Jakobkiewicz-Banecka Dr Michal Obuchowski Dr Monika Slominska Dr Agnieszka Szalewska-Palasz Dr hab. Alicja Wegrzyn (Assist. Prof.) Monika Glinkowska (PhD thesis submitted) Krzysztof Hinc Adam Iwanicki (PhD thesis submitted) Krzysztof Jasek Jacek Jasiecki Anna Janaszak Daria Julkowska Barbara Kedzierska (PhD thesis submitted) Marcin Los Wiktor Majczak Magdalena Narajczyk Konrad Plata Joanna Potrykus Katarzyna Potrykus (PhD thesis submitted) Aleksandra Sikora Bartosz Slominski Barbara Strzelczyk Katarzyna Ulanowska Ryszard Zielke 5 new PhD students since October 2003

Regulation of DNA replication

Effects of stress conditions on the regulation of DNA replication initiation

Grzegorz Wegrzyn, Karol Taylor (1992) Journal of Molecular Biology, 226, 681-688. Agnieszka Szalewska-Palasz, Alicja Wegrzyn, Anna Herman, Grzegorz Wegrzyn (1994) EMBO Journal, 13, 5779-5785. Agnieszka Szalewska-Palasz, Alicja Wegrzyn, Adam Blaszczak, Karol Taylor, Grzegorz Wegrzyn (1998) Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of USA, 95, 4241-4246. Sylwia Baranska, Grażyna Konopa, Grzegorz Wegrzyn (2002) Nucleic Acids Research, 30, 1176-1181. Katarzyna Potrykus, Grzegorz Wegrzyn, V. James Hernandez (2002) Journal of Biological Chemistry, 277, 43785-43791.

DnaA and SeqA, DNA replication regulators, are also specific transcription factors Monika Slomińska, Alicja Wegrzyn, Grazyna Konopa, Kirsten Skarstad, Grzegorz Wegrzyn (2001) Molecular Microbiology, 40, 1371-1380. Monika Slomińska, Grazyna Konopa, Justyna Ostrowska, Barbara Kedzierska, Grzegorz Wegrzyn, Alicja Wegrzyn (2003) Molecular Microbiology, 47, 1669-1679. Monika Slomińska, Grazyna Konopa, Sylwia Baranska, Grzegorz Wegrzyn, Alicja Wegrzyn (2003) Journal of Molecular Biology, 329, 59-68. Monika Glinkowska, Jerzy Majka, Walter Messer, Grzegorz Wegrzyn (2003) Journal of Biological Chemistry, 278, 22250-22256.

Regulation of RNA polyadenylation in bacteria Jacek Jasiecki, Grzegorz Wegrzyn (2003) EMBO Reports, 4, 172-177.

Electric DNA chips

Why do bacteria emit light? Agata Czyz, Borys Wrobel, Grzegorz Wegrzyn (2000) Vibrio harveyi bioluminescence plays a role in stimulation of DNA repair. Microbiology, 146, 283-288. Agata Czyz, Konrad Plata, Grzegorz Wegrzyn (2003) Stimulation of DNA repair as an evolutionary drive for bacterial luminescence. Luminescence, 18, 140-144.

Some other projects The mechanism of the stringent response Role of small bacterial GTP-binding proteins Construction of new microbiological assay for detection of mutagenic pollution of marine environment Protein phosphorylation and dephosphorylation in Bacillus subtilis Molecular taxonomy of lichens Mechanism of bacterial resistence to chloramphenicol (how to sensitize bacteria to this antibiotic?) Mechanisms of stimulation of transcription initiation and antitermination - role of the alpha subunit of RNA polymerase Regulation of the heat shock response (small heat shock proteins and regulation of transcription of heat shock genes)

New projects: human molecular genetics Genetic mechanisms of elevated levels of homocysteine (hyperhomocysteinemia) Genetic and biochemical mechanisms of variability of mucopolysaccharidoses (lysosomal storage diseases) – implications for prediction of the course of the disease and for possible treatment

International grants Since 1996 - 7 grants from: M. Curie II Fund (USA), Volkswagen Foundation (Germany), European Comission (EU), National Institutes of Health (USA) - 2 grants, NATO Science Program, The Wellcome Trust (UK)

National grants Since 1996 - 23 grants from: State Committee for Scientific Research Foundation for Polish Science Provincial Fund for Environmental Protection

PUBLICATIONS Since 1991: > 150 articles in international journals, including: Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, EMBO J., EMBO Rep., J. Biol. Chem., J. Mol. Biol., Mol. Microbiol. Nucleic Acids Res., Biochem. J.